Various pumping systems have been proposed for use particularly with the dairy industry, where the device may be cleaned in place without requiring disassembly of the unit. Such systems are of benefit to the packaging industry as substantial time savings are possible because the frequency of pump disassembly is reduced. Furthermore, the constant assembly and disassembly of the pump components makes the units more susceptible to damage and wear thus reducing their expected life.
It is apparent that a pump and dispensing system which did not require constant assembly for sterilization would be favourably received by the dairy industry however, they are also concerned with high quality control standards which can not easily be achieved with a system that is not sterilized daily.
One system that is designed to overcome a number of these problems is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,640, which issued to Wettlan et al., Sept. 26, 1972. This system uses a separate pumping chamber in combination with a dosing tube which dispenses the product to the individual containers. The system is such that the dosing tube may be connected to the piston chamber allowing cleaning fluid, which is circulated throughout the device, to contact the rear face of the piston and the stem of the piston to assure the working surfaces of the pump are contacted by the cleaning fluid. Although this is an improvement over the prior art, it is not completely satisfactory for the dairy industry as rinsing of the dispensing device is only part of the problem with the other requirement being a system that can be sterilized in place such that the quality control standards can be met.
The present invention provides a unique combination of a dispensing pump and distribution nozzle which is adapted to be cleaned in place with all working surfaces of the pump and nozzle sterilized during the cleaning cycle.